


I Hate You | I Love You (ONE PIECE x READER)

by fyfabz



Category: One Piece
Genre: Angst, Eventual Romance, Eventual Sex, F/M, Fluff, Romance, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Unrequited Love, alternative universe, explicit because of reasons
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-16
Updated: 2019-01-09
Packaged: 2019-03-05 19:10:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 20,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13394349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fyfabz/pseuds/fyfabz
Summary: ❝Friends can break your heart too.❞welp, my hand slipped into whats gonna be a multi-chaptered story. this is the result of an experiment, spotify being a little shit and three to four ideas combined into one. enjoy!↠ i'm tagging this explicit because of reasons ↞One Piece belongs to Eiichiro Oda.





	1. PLAYLIST

✖ **PLAYLIST** ✖

I. DENIAL

**➤**   ** _the heart wants what it wants - selena gomez._**  
**➤**   ** _i wanna be yours - sofia karlberg._**  
**➤** ** _good enough - evanescence._**  
**➤** ** _sally's song - amy lee._**  
**➤** ** _blue jeans - lana del rey._**

II. ANGER

**➤** **_creep - radiohead._ **  
**➤** **_broken inside - broken iris._ **  
**➤** **_i have questions - camila cabello._ **  
**➤** **_i hate u, i love u - gnash ft olivia o'brien._ **  
**➤** **_the change - evanescence._ **

III. BARGAINING

**➤** **_the kill - 30 seconds to mars._ **  
**➤** **_then - anne marie._ **  
**➤** **_satisfied - renée elise goldsberry._ **  
**➤** **_i can't make you love me - bon iver._ **  
**➤** **_wolves - selena gomez ft. marshmello._ **  


IV. DEPRESSION

**➤** **_perfect - selena gomez._ **  
**➤** **_deathbeds - bring me the horizon._ **  
**➤** **_someone like you - adele._ **  
**➤** **_reality without you - our last night (acoustic)._ **  
**➤** **_stop crying your heart out - oasis._ **

V. ACCEPTANCE

**➤** **_not afraid anymore - halsey._ **  
**➤** **_crazy in love - eden project ft. leah kelly._ **  
**➤** **_can't help falling in love - haley reinhart_ **  
**➤** **_make you feel my love - adele._ **  
**➤** **_perfect - ed sheeran ft. beyonce._ **

**=====**  
_hey, guys. happy new year! let's get started shall we?_


	2. 001.

**I STILL REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST SAW HIM.**  It was the afternoon of a Monday and though I was supposed to go straight home after an excruciating day at work, I had been craving some well-needed coffee. So, with that thought in mind, I had stopped by a local shop; and as I was waiting in line his eyes suddenly collided with mine.

I swear to you when I say that I could see galaxies exploding behind my eyes and my future reflected on that smile. I wish I could tell you what was going through his mind as he casually spoke to me for the first time, his smile never left his lips and I'm sure mine did neither.

"I'm Zoro," he casually introduced himself as. And as I gave him my name, his lips made it sound as the most beautiful thing my ears had been blessed with. I wanted to hear it again and again, because I was sure I would never grow tired of the way my name left his lips.

It took me 2 or 3 minutes from our conversation to realize I was in love with this man. And that  _realization_  only grew inside my mind as it played with all the little scenarios that ran through my head; I had pictured our whole life together within the 180 seconds of conversation I had with him.

The little dates we would have, the first kiss we would share, the first house we would get...

A whole life together that was never meant to happen... Cause you see, that fateful day, on that Monday afternoon, after I was leaving work, I wasn't alone.

"(Y/N)!" Julieta, or Jules, as I love to call her — _my best friend_ — called as she approached me on the line, "did you already ordered?"

"No, I haven't but—"  _But come meet the love of my life, is what I probably wanted to say._

However, I don't get to finish that sentence; one look at Jules and it doesn't takes me much to understand what that look in her eyes mean.  _I know that look._

And as I let my eyes glance back towards the greenette I know that he would've never looked at me the way he was looking at her.

The way  _I_ was looking at  _him._

_I could've waited my whole life for the kind of reaction she got from him in 15 seconds._

That thought alone broke me and though it should've stopped me from growing this feeling inside my chest, it didn't. I couldn't choose whom I fall in love with, I never had. And boy, I was hell over heels for Roronoa Zoro...

I loved everything about him.

His seeking attention green hair, his intense brown eyes, his broad back, the small and bigger scars littering his body, his lack of orientation and the look in his eyes whenever he found some secluded shop with something that caught up his interest.

 _It was like a puppy with a new toy! So cute_.

But if you were to ask me, what I loved the most about him? That would be his smile. It was especially bright whenever he talked about Kendo and Kuina, his late sister. The first time he told me about her, he made me feel special. See, Zoro's that kind of guy that likes to keep to himself so I felt special he would share such intimate bits of his past... 

_I was special._

And I lived with that thought for as long as 23 seconds before he innocently blurted out how easy was to tell Jules all of this... an hour after meeting her.

_Sure. I was special. But I could never aspire to her position._

Even so, I continued to love the greenette, especially the way he laughed. He had an infectious one, and it made me want to laugh more often. It didn't matter if he was just poking fun at Sanji's eyebrows or if he was playing tag with Luffy. Everything he did was more enjoyable to me because he was around.

But everything was more enjoyable for him if  _she_  was around.

The worst thing is that... I know Jules like I know my own mind and I know that if I had told her that I loved Zoro she would've smiled and said;  _He's yours._

But it was because of that same reason I kept my feelings to myself. Jules is the best person I've known in this entire world. She's trusting, kind and I can try but will never find anyone as good as her.

So if I had said;  _please don't be with him. I love him;_ on the outside she would've smiled, kissed my forehead and pushed me towards the greenette. However, deep down, I know she would be heartbroken.

And what good would that be? It's not as if Zoro will immediately find himself attracted towards me after being discouraged by Jules... After all, he loves her, not me. And if she were to do that for me, to give up her happiness next to the greenette just so I wouldn't have to suffer... I would only end up causing unhappiness for the both of them and eventually lose them for good.

_I wouldn't be able to stand that._

Jules and I, have gone through thick and thin. She has been there for me for more times than the ones I can count on. She was my first true friend; that person I could rely on, one who didn't make me feel used, who was there for me unconditionally, the one to call whenever I felt sad, to pick me up when I fall.

She's my person.

 _And what kind of person would I be if I caused grieve towards my friends?_ — Not a good one, that's for sure.

\- ∞ -

"Hey, (Y/N)..." he calls for my attention as I snap away from the memories consuming my head, my eyes glancing towards his lips as he sips on his coffee, the low temperatures rising more and more, making me shudder. "How much longer do we have to wait?"

I glance back towards the street. "Just a couple more of minutes." I smile, barely. "She should be out soon."

And just like that the door jingles open, followed by the unmistakable groan from my best friend as she makes her way towards us.

"Please tell me one of those is mine." She groans plopping down next to the greenette as I finally direct my attention to the pair.

"Black as your soul for you, darling." Zoro smirks as he pecks her cheek. She immediately blushes, as if it was a reflex, her eyes reflecting nothing but adoration towards her boyfriend.

"You know me so well, marimo." She teases, and the nickname brings a coy smile to my lips but makes Zoro groan lightly in frustration.

"Oi!" he calls towards Jules. "Don't go hanging around that ero-cook!"

"When he offers me free food, you can bet your ass I'll be there!" She laughs and as they start to playfully bicker, my eyes drop down to my freezing fingertips, trying to find solace on the warmth of the cup, nails scratching at the glossy material as I bring it up towards my lips, the liquid warming up my throat immediately.

I sigh deeply, leaning my cheek into the palm of my hand as I look back towards the street, my eyes drifting to the people walking and going around their day, maybe on their way home towards somebody special, meanwhile the only thing I have special at home is Comedy Central Special's.

 _Well fuck me, that's lame._ I chuckle as I close my eyes with a smile, capturing the attention from my best friend.

"What's wrong, darling?" she asks with endearment as my eyes glance towards her, my lungs filling with necessary air before shaking my head and standing up.

"Nothing." I reply, "I'm gonna leave you two, lovebirds. I just remembered I have something to do."

_Somewhere, in the background, I'm sure there's a joke where a tub of ice-cream says: Hi, I'm something._

"Oh, okay." She nods her head, as her fingers leave a feather like touch against the 3-piece set earrings on Zoro's left ear. "You're coming tomorrow though, right?"

_Tomorrow?_

And as I try to pinpoint which event she might be referring to, my eyes find themselves trapped for a moment in the lips of the marimo as he peppers kisses down the side of her neck.

_Is it a shitty thought to be thinking that your best friend boyfriend should be kissing your neck and not hers? Yeah. Probably..._

"Tomorrow?" I ask, my voice doesn't even tries to hide the fact I have no idea to what she's referring to.

"I told you Ace was gonna have a party last week! It's tomorrow and I don't wanna go alone!"

_Oh, no. Hell no..._

"Isn't Zoro going?"

"Later," the said man replies. "I have a shift running late at work."

"Errhm," I groan as my stupid brain tries to find an excuse...  _Homework? We're not in college anymore. Work? I am a freelance. Laundry? She was there when I did it... Yesterday!_

_Fuck._

"I... don't wanna go?" I ask, testing the waters but she immediately glares at me, making me roll my eyes at her silent threat.

_I will kill you in your sleep._

_I would like to see you try, hoe._

"Hai, hai..." I raise my hands in surrender with a small chuckle. "I'll be there."

"Wear something hot!"

_Pfft! This woman, I swear... Well, I mean Jules is gonna be there, so it can't be that bad, right?_

\- ∞ -

**WRONG.**

Oh god, I was so wrong.

If Ace was known for something that was definitely for hosting the biggest parties the whole neighborhood has ever seen. Shit, within 3 minutes of arriving I had already lost sight of Jules and had been self-delegated to look for the brunette that called herself my best friend in a black sequin racer top, black leather shorts and heels.

 **HEELS**.

_"Wear something hot!"_

_I'm gonna kill her!_

However, after playing search party for nearly 20 minutes I had found every possible person in that goddamn house—TWICE— but no signs of Jules.

 _Maybe I should try calling her pho_ —

"Hey, (Y/N)!" Ace greets me as he swings a sweaty arm around my shoulders, my head turns slightly to the right as I get a good look at his state. Small beads of sweat were bathing his forehead, his shirt was missing and his naked torso was gaining more and more attention by the minute. However, what gets my attention is the fact he's  _extending,_ for better use of the word, a red cup towards me. "Wow, you look hot! Want a drink?"

"T-thanks. I think you should slow down on those though, fire face." I tease as I grab the  _empty_ cup from his hands. The strong smell of vodka fills my nostrils as I bring it close to my face.  _Damn Ace!_

"Come on," I say as I struggle with his body that starts to suddenly get heavier and heavier.  _Don't you dare, Ace!_  I consider for a tiny moment getting him upstairs to his bed so he can rest, but the thought of him falling completely asleep midway and then dragging me down the stairs towards my death is not very appealing so I opt for the couch.

By the time I drop him in the couch next to Marco, who is watching Sabo and Luffy play DDR, he has fallen completely asleep.

"Damn yoi," the older, blonde male mutters before looking up at me, his usually tired eyes widen for a bit for what I assume is Ace sudden dead weight dropped on him. His cheeks, however, harbor a slight tint of red; so it could also be he's just wasted.

"I told him not to chug down so fast those drinks. Thanks, (Y/N)." Marco continues as I shake my head, dismissing the thought, my eyes glancing around the room before they get caught up in what I'm sure is the back of the head of my best friend.

_Friendship achievement unlocked: Recognizing her through the back of her hair. Check!_

I make my way through the loud crowd before I stop dead in my tracks, my eyes taking in the fact she's not alone but with  _him_. His back's suddenly towards me, which allows me a good view of his muscles constricting as he picks her off from the ground, caging her body against the wall as she wraps her legs around his waist, lips attacking each other with passion as I stand there, just watching...

_Now that I think about it, when I first found out they were together, I had also caught them kissing... But instead of a party, they were at our old apartment, sitting on the balcony..._

_After that, the balcony became a taboo place for me and it didn't took much longer after that for me to find my own place, mainly because Zoro spent most of his time with Jules and that meant he was a lot at our place and now they were living together and_ —

 _Fuck. Why am I crying? Why, after all this time, I still can't forget him? Why do I still love him_ — _Why_ —

Fuck it.

And before I can second-guess myself, my feet are already carrying me towards the kitchen; the unmistakable mane of brown hair from Thatch greets me with a smile. I look like a mess but thankfully he doesn't ask any questions about it besides giving me a frown as if asking.

_Who made you cry?_

But I decide not to answer that unspoken question and blurt out. "I want whatever you gave Ace."

Next thing I know is that I somehow ended up having a shots competition against Shanks and Nami before I started a round of beer pong with Eustass Kid.

"Why don't we make it interesting, huh?" I smirk at Kid, as I chug down my 9th or is it my 10th drink?  _Well, whatever._

"I'm listening." He smirks, golden eyes, gawking at me with hunger.

"What about some  _strip_ beer pong?"

"Wanna see me naked, (Y/N)?"

"That. Or you could get really lucky?" I wink with a teasing smile before I am yanked back a few meters away from the table.

"What the hell—!"

"(Y/N), what the hell do you think you're doing!?" Jules voice is filled with concern as she glances between me and back to Kid who seems to have bailed. Boo-hoo.

"Playing? Isn't that obvious?" I giggle and I should've known I was busted when she asks...

"Are you drunk!?" Her tone of voice let's me know I won't be able to hide this but still I try my best.

"No, I'm not."  _Oh boy, I was so drunk. But she didn't need to know that!_

"Honey..." she calls my attention with one of the many nicknames she has assigned me over the years as her hands examine my face. My mind sobering up as she continues. "What happened?"

 _He chose you. That's what happened..._ But I don't say that, in fact, I don't get to say anything before she continues...

"Did you drank anything weird?! Are you feeling—"

_God, she's too good to me and I'm the shitty friend that's in love with her boyfriend. Fuck. I wanna cry again._

"Nothing happened, woman." I shake off her hold, trying to hide my face away from her, trying to act as if I'm not upset over the fact my best friend was making out with  _her_  boyfriend.

_Talk about delusional._

"I'm going back to play—!"

"No, you're not. We are leaving, (Y/N)." She says, preoccupied and as if she's talking to a child. "You're drunk."

Sadly, in my state of mind, I don't see it like that.

"I told you I'm not fucking drunk!"  _I was so drunk I could give the old woman Kokoro a run down for her money._ "Why you wanna ruin my fun!? You wanted me to come to the fucking party and then you bailed—!"

"I didn't bai—"

"And now that I'm having fun you wanna take me away, nuh uh. Go without me." I look over to Zoro, his eyes holding concern towards me.  _No, don't look at me like that, if you do that I'm definitely gonna cry_ — and sure enough, there it is, the need, that  _urge_  to cry. Fuck.

"(Y/N)?" Jules sweet voice tries again as I manage to contain myself somehow but as she continues speaking, something worse happens. "C'mon, honey, let's get you—"

"Why you wanna help me?" I spit out. "Don't you two wanna fuck somewhere without me disturbing? I mean, it must have been a while since you were about to do it in the backyard, don't you think?"

_Word vomit._

"(Y/N)—!"

"Jules—" Zoro calls for her but I don't listen to what he says when I shake her hold away from my arm and make my way towards the living room, my hands grabbing a lonely red cup chugging down the contents in a gulp before I let the lyrics from Lady Gaga's John Wayne fill my ears as I shake my body to the rhythm of the music. I'm distraught, I still wanna cry and I feel like shit for what I know I have just done towards my friend, when all she wanted was to help me; regardless, I never stop moving my hips to the rhythm trying to forget them... Trying to...

Forget the image of his hands running underneath the material of her shirt...

_No..._

Forget the way his lips were hungrily attached to her neck....

_Stop..._

Forget the way her fingers were tangling themselves onto his locks of green hair...

_Stop fucking thinking about—_

\- ∞ -

The sound of what I think is an alarm wakes me up with a groan. My head's killing me, I feel like shit and the light coming from the windows is hurting me even more than what I thought to be possible.

_Weird, I thought I had closed the blinds before leaving._

I sit up on the mattress to the best of my abilities as the annoying unidentified sound comes to an end. I rub my temples, attempting to ease my headache, before I proceed to rub the sleep off my face, my eyes finally glancing around my surroundings only to realize I'm not in my apartment.

And that I'm naked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> all aboard the angst train. this is gonna be such a roller-coaster. bare with me.


	3. 002.

**NOW YOU'VE REALLY DONE IT, (Y/N).** _What the flying fuck!? Where am I?_

A sudden bark brings my attention towards the ball of white fur currently lying on the floor. An all white Siberian husky lies on his back as he stares at me, head tilted to the side, probably taking in on the stranger in his owner's bed.

I muster a smile and a wave of my hand before he jumps on the bed, making me squeal at the show of affection he displays as he licks my cheek and decides to lay next to me in the mess of sheets. My hand scratches his beautiful fur as my eyes look around the place, trying to put together the pieces of my broken memory.

_I had a one night stand that's for su —Wait. What if this is like one of those shows me and Jules like to watch and some weird shit happened to me!?_

At that thought my hands instinctively start searching for anything weird that might be on my body, like... an incision or something.

"I didn't steal your organs if that's what you're thinking," a smooth voice startles me as my fingers tighten their death like grip on the thin bed sheet that covers my body. "I'm not into that."

My head snaps towards the source of the voice and my eyes immediately collide with the body of what is probably one of the most gorgeous men I've ever laid eyes upon.

Several tribal tattoos cover the, rippled with muscle, tanned skin as a pair of gray eyes watch my every move with a slight amusement _._  A black goatee and sideburns accompany the mane of black silky hair that frames his beautiful face.

_Holy shit! He's HOT!_

"I—Where—Who are you?" I ask, trying to put my thoughts together as I try not to let my eyes wander through the small droplets of water running down the muscles of his body, and beyond the waistband of his spotted sweatpants. The thumping inside my head easiest the task, since it must be probably trying to comprehend its own stupidity for my past decisions.

"Bepo, come on boy, come down from there!" He calls affectingly towards the big ball of fur as he follows his owner's command and hops down from the bed, leaving through the bedroom door after receiving a caress of affection from said owner.

"I put your clothes in the washer. They're getting dry but they should be done soon and your phone was dead, so I put it to charge." He continues, pointing to the device on top of the nightstand as he dries his hair with a towel and walks around the bedroom.

"There are also some painkillers and a glass of water to help your hangover." I mutter a barely audible 'thanks' as I let my hand reach out for the most needed medicine, to then take my phone and unlock the screen as it lights up with 15 missed calls from Jules, 43 texts and every other notification coming from Facebook, filling up my screen. With the name of my best friend on my phone's screen, some bits from last night come back to my mind.

_"Don't you two wanna fuck somewhere without me disturbing? I mean, it must have been a while since you were about to do it in the backyard, don't you think?"_

Well now, I've really done it.

I search for her contact name and just when I'm about to call her, I remember that I'm still naked underneath a bed sheet in a stranger's place.

_Priorities, (Y/N)... Priorities._

"You haven't told me your name."

"I thought you were gonna call your friend." He continues, his back's towards me as he searches for what I assume might be a shirt, his back muscles contracting with the movement and though I try not to gauge at it too much, the ink on his back isn't the only thing catching my attention.

There are several red lines going down from his shoulder plates to his lower back...  _Are those_ — _Oh my fuck! Did I made those!?_

"I... I was gonna—" his eyes glance at me over his shoulder, when I start to stutter over my words, a smile sketching his lips.

_The bastard's enjoying this! Well fuck you, buddy!_

"You were what...?" He presses, enticement lacing his words as he turns his body around and leans his back against the dresser with arms crossed above his naked chest. The ink on his arms makes him look appeti— _Oh no, no, no, no. You better stop that!_

"Y-yeah, I was going to— _Stop doing that!_ " I shout, shaking my head as if that will help my predicament.  _Asshole_ —as I shall call him for now—lets out an amused chuckle.

"Am I distracting you?" He asks with a damned smirk as he tilts his head slightly to the side, his gray eyes piercing into mine.

_You little shit..._

"You wish, you little shit." The words leave my lips before I can stop them and though he should be feeling offended. He doesn't, in fact, he looks quite pleased as if I just presented a challenge towards him.

_I didn't. Or maybe I did? Regardless, I would rather rip my arm off than let him know he was distracting me. Oh, hell no!_

He laughs, though. A loud and beautiful laugh leaves his throat as his head drops for a moment and when he raises it again and speaks, is my turn to be surprised. "I'm sorry." He stops himself, pushing his hair back with a tattooed hand when I start glaring holes into his face. "I'm Law. Trafalgar Law." He finally introduces himself as.

_Trafalgar, huh? I think I like 'asshole' better..._

"(Y/N)." I say, and then realize... "But you probably already knew that..."

He nods his head as his eyes start roaming lower than my face; his intense gaze makes me feel he secretly wished there wasn't a bed sheet between his eyes and my naked body. The feeling only makes me clutch the bed sheet tighter; and at my actions, he lets out another chuckle.

_What?_

"You do realize I have already seen you naked, right?"

_Well, you fucking blunt asshole... That doesn't mean I want you to continue see me naked!_

"Where are we?" I ask as I divert the attention from his question towards my surroundings; the windows, even though they're open, don't give me a single clue as to where are we.

"Rocky Port." He says and as I glance back towards him, it's inevitable for me to gauge at the ink covering his arms, chest, hands and knuckles. Were those hands really touching me last— _WAIT DID HE JUST SAID ROCKY_   _PORT!? HOLY SHIT, THAT'S FAR! I GUESS YOU'RE NOT IN KANSAS ANYMORE, (Y/N)!_

"Uhm, can I use your shower?" I ask shyly, placing my feet onto the coldness of the floor.

_Fucking hell, this can't be—_

"Be my guest." He says, extending a hand towards a door where I presume the bathroom is.

_Oh shit, it is happening..._

"You're okay?" He asks and I don't miss the amusement in his words.  _The bastard is enjoying the fact_ ** _he knows_** _he fucked the feeling out from my legs!_

"Yeah," I shrug, as if my legs have not completely abandoned on me. "I'm just fond of the cold."

"Oh, I see..." He muses and I know he's not buying it, but I'll stick to it. "I thought you couldn't stand and like the gentleman I am, I was gonna offer you some assistance... But since your feet are just fond of a cold floor..."

"Yup, just fond, so your  _assistance_ is not needed." I pull out the fakest smile ever on my lips, my hands still clutching the bed sheet as tight as I am doing towards my pride.

"I see..." He chuckles, and right before he's about to add something to that statement, an alarm interrupts him and I'm grateful to whatever God is out there that he leaves the room in search of what I hope are my clothes.

I take this opportunity to stand as fast as I can, like ripping a bandit; however, the bandit wasn't ready to be ripped and the soreness from my legs spreads to my thighs, hips and back.

_Fuck you, Trafalgar! Fuck you._

With unsteady steps, I somehow make it to the bathroom and by the time the water hits my skin I can finally sense control over my legs, properly. I wash my body's soreness away as my hands start discovering bite marks, hickeys and even fingerprint marks against my skin.

_Well, look at you, you slut. You had fun, didn't you? No more drinks for you, stupid-head!_

"(Y/N)-ya?"  _I'm sorry, did he just said... (Y/N)-YA?_  "I'm gonna leave your clothes in the bed, okay?" I hear Trafalgar's voice through the door as I step out from the shower, quickly covering my body with a white fluffy towel but before I can reply a quick thanks, he adds.

"And if you were also looking for a cold shower, I can help you adjust the  _temperature_  of the water,  _kitten_."

"JA! That won't be necessary, you dick." I mutter the  _adorable_  nickname loud enough, and he manages to catch it. His laugh is the last thing I hear before the sound of what I assume is the bedroom door opens and closes behind him.

I quickly step out from the bathroom, drying my hair with a towel as I see my clothes from last night neatly folded in bed. I take every piece of clothing and start to dress myself as fast as I can.

_At least these can also pass for daytime clothes; otherwise my walk of shame would be extra embarrassing. Now, all I need to do is leave with whatever little of my dignity I have left before—_

The door opens just as I'm strapping my heels in. Trafalgar's gray eyes get caught on them as mine get caught on his body; a pair of black flannel dress pants and a long sleeved dress shirt of the same dark color now covers his tattooed body from prying eyes.

"Those heels..." He mutters with a sudden lust clouded gaze and smirk; his comment only triggers in me a memory from our last night adventure.

 _My heels digging into his back as he carried me into his bedroom, my heels digging into his back as he pushed deep and slowly inside me, kissing my neck; his lips kissing my ankle as he held one of my legs over his shoulder, his cock pushing deep into my—_ FUCK!

I snap my gaze away from him as I feel my face starting to heat up. My thighs pushing themselves together as if trying to relive that sensation.

_No, bad (Y/N)! Bad!_

"Uhm, I should go now." I stand up quickly, grabbing my purse and phone and pushing past him. I manage to make it to half of the stairs when his warm hand catches my wrist, making me stop in my tracks. He's standing a couple of steps higher, forcing me to look up, as if he wasn't tall enough.

"Wai—" his voice gets interrupted when my phone starts blasting signaling me of an incoming call. I take my hand away as I take my phone and watch  _his_ name light up the screen. Picking it up instantly, I turn my back towards the expectant gray eyes trying to peek into the deepest parts of my soul and continue to descend down the stairs and towards the door, leaving the apartment behind me as I speak into the device...

"Hey, Zoro."

∞

I hate hangovers. I do. I didn't felt as bad when I was down at the asshole's pla— _OH MY GOD! STOP THINKING ABOUT HIM! Chances are, I will probably never see him again!_

_And good riddance, he's a dick anyway!_

However, after talking to Zoro, he said we should meet down by the cafeteria next to the bookstore in Bleek Street. So, after managing to get to my apartment and taking a shower AND changing clothes. Here I was, sitting in a coffee shop, drinking black coffee as my mind was finally putting together the pieces of all my stupidity from last night.

From how I lost Jules, to me watching her eat face with Zoro, to me getting drunk and beating Shanks in a drinking contest, to me dancing, to... Trafalgar Law. I sigh deeply, taking a sip of my coffee cup when I feel a pair of hands blind my eyes, but this weren't Zoro's strong and rough hands...

_No, this were..._

"Hey, honey..." She greets me with a smile. And that, for some odd reason, pisses me off.

"Jules..." I trail off, however that doesn't stops me from apologizing. "I'm sorry, I didn't meant what I said, I didn't—I'm so sorry, I know you were looking after me. I'm seriously—!"

"(Y/N)!" she calls for my attention, making me stop my rambling, as she sits, not in front of me, but next to me. "It's fine, I was mad, of course, because you said some mean things but—" she continues, hugging me sideways. "Zoro made me realize that you were drunk and that even I knew deep down that you didn't meant anything. In any case it's Thatch fault."

_I don't deserve them. Not you. Not him._

"No," I chuckle, eyes looking down. "It's not his fault. I insisted—I wanted to get wasted."

"Well," she laughs. "Mission accomplished." And then she hits me. Hard, on the shoulder.

"Ouch! What the hell was that for!?" I complain.

"For making me worried AND for thinking I had bailed on you!"

"Wait... what!?"

"You said yesterday I had bailed on you to be with Zoro! Which was not true, you hoe. I saw you with Ace and though I tried to get close Zoro dragged me away, you misunderstood the whole situation! You should know I would never abandon you, stupid!"

_Wait..._

"YOU ARE MAD BECAUSE OF THAT!?" My outburst gets the attention from a couple of people nearby. Mainly because I seriously couldn't believe she thought this was a bigger issue than the fact I had basically spit out on her face she was horny enough to do it on the backyard.

"Well, duh." She says, crossing her arms above the table, body leaning just a pinch forward and her smile, always present on her face. "And as a reward for treating your wife like that I want a latte."

"But I said some mean things about you and Zo—"

"They're forgotten, my love." She smiles. "I know  _you_  and I don't need anybody's guidance to know you meant nothing of it, so there's nothing to forgive there." She shrugs. "I know I've been way too much into the PDA with Zoro and I'm sorry. I realized a little too late that I had you play the third wheel for a while and I promised myself I wouldn't do that. I'm—"

"Jules, stop I..."  _I don't deserve you. You are sitting there considering my feelings when I'm the one in love with the man you call your boyfriend._ "I don't mind about those things, I was stressed with work and I just—"  _I exploded when I saw you making out with the man I've been in love since I first saw him_.

"There's nothing to forgive, Jules. I'm happy you are this happy."  _And I am. I truly am. I'm just destroyed as well._

"Then..." She smiles. "There's nothing to talk about, I love you above anything (Y/N), bros before hoes, right? Although in this case might be hoes before bros...?" she jokes as she pushes my shoulder with hers, making me chuckle and agree with a smile.

"Yeah, yeah... Sure." She laughs as she pulls out her phone. My eyes are drawn to my friend's text conversation when I see  _his_ name. And I'm able to decipher that Zoro had basically set me up so I could make peace with Jules. However, I look away the moment I read  _'I love you'_  as the last message sent from the greenette towards my friend.

_7 billion people in this whole world and I had to fall for my best friend's boyfriend. Life's just cruel, won't you say?_

"Be right back. Gonna get you your latte."

"(Y/N), I was just joking, honey." She laughs.

"Well, I want a drink, so might as well buy you something, take it or leave it, hoe."

"Fine," she smiles. "Mocca Frappuccino, please."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Oh, (Y/N)..." Jules calls as I'm getting near the counter. "We're meeting Zoro and his friend for movies later."

_Oh, yaaay. I'm so excited—Can you notice my excitement through your screen?_

∞

"So who's this friend of Zoro's we're meeting that I haven't seen?" My voice breaks into the silence as we stand near the movie theater, waiting.

Jules had come with me back home so I could change into a choice of clothes she approved since she was already trying to set me up.

Deep down, I wish I could tell her straight up that it won't work. But then she would ask  _"Why?"_  And answering;  _"Because he's not Zoro."_  Doesn't sounds like something she would just shrug off.  

Instead, I let her dress me in a pair of skinny black jeans, wine red dracht cotton crop top and some black hidden wedge heel sneakers as I let my hair down in small waves and let her drag me into yet, another "set up" she thinks is gonna work.

_Isn't she something?_

"Oh? I don't know either." Jules shrugs. "According to Zoro, he was studying abroad for a couple of years, he later came back here, then he got a job opportunity in the states and now he recently returned for good."

"Wow, that's quite a life he has there." I reply in a surprised thought. "Where was he?"

"Cambridge, and then New York. Cardio internship in Los Angeles followed by a Neurology one in Las Vegas; but that's full of boring details. Don't you think, (Y/N)- _ya_?" An all too familiar voice whispers against the shell of my ear, making my heart drop into the pit of my stomach.

 _Oh god, please don't._  But when I turn around, as my best friend jumps into the arms of the love of my life, my eyes are glued to the gray eyes I've come acquainted belonged to the asshole of—

"Oh, Jules... (Y/N)... Lemme introduce you," Zoro smiles, his arm around Jules waist as he smiles brightly. "This is my friend, Law. Trafalgar Law."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... and so he appears.


	4. 003.

**"YOU TWO KNOW EACH OTHER?"** _ShitShitShit!_ Jules question makes my eyes go wide and skin go pale. Her eyes are going back and forth between Trafalgar and me, her suspicion only seeming to grow with each passing second.

"I—I don't really—" I stutter my defense but a snap of fingers, not only makes me jump from the surprise, but also cuts in between my bad-worded lie.

"Oh yeah!" It has been Zoro, whom unknowingly, has come to my rescue. "Law's the friend I told you said looked out for (Y/N) at the party!"  _Eh?_  "She didn't gave you too much trouble I hope."

_What am I a child!? And what the everlasting flying fuck, Zoro!? Are you telling me it's your fault I ended up in Trafalgar's bed?!_

"It was no problem, Zoro-ya." The asshole muses with a sadistic smirk as he wraps an arm around my shoulders, his voice coming dangerously low as he continuous _._  "I made sure she  _came_  home safe and sound."

_Listen here you little—!_

"That's good," the greenette nods his head, pleased with his friend's answer.  _At least someone is._  "See babe? I told you everything would be fine."

_You beautiful clueless bastard..._

"Yeah..." Jules trails off unconvinced. Her eyes don't even spare a glance up towards the greenette she calls her boyfriend and my eyes are fiercely avoiding hers as I try to play it cool in front of my friend.

Thankfully, soon enough, Jules decides to drop the subject, momentarily— because I know this ain't over until she has every detail she  _knows_  I'm hiding— I might as well start thinking of something...

"Okay, guys..." Jules directs her attention to Trafalgar's arm around my shoulders to then my face, to his face and then to Zoro. "There's a showtime for IT at 8, so that gives us some time to grab food and buy any popcorn if we want any later, sounds good?"

_Sounds perfect. Can I now murder the fucking asshole whose arm is still touching me!?_

"Sounds good." Law agrees, shrugging off and  _finally_  taking his arm off me.

_I'm gonna bathe in holy water to cleanse my body of his smell._

_His fucking delicious smell._

"Yeah, that sounds— Oh,  _shit_!" Zoro curses, "I just remembered Luffy asked me to pick up Resident Evil 7 from the store. Wanna come with me, Law?"

What would be worse? For the tattooed asshole to accept his offer and leave me alone to my friend and her  _certain_ interrogation or for him to decline and her to inquire further between us until she gets what she wants?

"No, thanks." He politely declines. "You go ahead." Zoro nods his head and opens the door for secret worst case scenario #3; he drags Jules away and leaves me alone with Trafalgar.

_Fuck you, Zoro. I love you but fuck you._

"You seem tense, (Y/N)-ya." He points out, and I don't have to turn around to feel the smirk that must be planted on his face. "Why don't you—"

"Listen here, you little shit." At my remark, he smiles. "If you dare make any comments about what happened between us I will gut you open like a pig!" I threaten, as I poke his chest with a finger.

This asshole, just smiles. Smiles as he says, "I did not knew you possessed such knowledge."  _What? What is he talking abo—_ He then catches me off guard as he wraps a tattooed hand around my finger, pulling me closer to his body— _his hard-rock body_ — and then wraps his left arm around my waist, holding me in place so I can't escape.

The closeness, makes me notice, he is not longer wearing the same clothes from this morning; in fact, he was now wearing some blue jeans, a plain white t-shirt and a black jacket—to which he has rolled up the sleeves up to his elbows. The tattoos I find so intriguing and appealing manage to capture my attention once again.

"The hell do you think you're doi—"  _Doing_ , is the word I'm looking for to finish that sentence but what comes out of his mouth next has my brain coming up short.

"Does your best friend knows you're in love with her boyfriend?"

**_(Y/N).exe stopped functioning. Please try again later._ **

"E-Excuse me?" It certainly takes me more than a few seconds before I can  _stutter_ the words out of my mouth as I feign cluelessness to his knowledge, but I know he manages to see right through me and my lie. "What the hell... are you talking about?"

_Good one. Stick to your words and all shall be fi—_

"Of your obvious appeal towards your friend's boyfriend. Duh."

_FUUUUUUCK!_

"I don't like Zoro! Are you insane?!" This time, I manage to avoid the stuttering as I let my words sound as convincing as they can be towards the ravenette.

"I never said you liked him." He rolls his eyes. "I said you love him."

"Same shit," I reply as I take a step towards somewhere that means to be away from him. "I have no romantic feelings for Zoro."

_Bullshit! But he didn't had to know that._

"Oh is that so? So if I said you called me Zoro yesterday..." I had barely taken two steps back when his words make me stop dead in my tracks. "... in your drunken state could you still maintain that façade?"

_No... this isn't happening... No fucking way!_

"I'm pretty sure I did not."

"That doesn't answers my question."

_THIS CAN'T BE FUCKING HAPPENING!_

"Naaaaaah," I scrunch up my face in denial. "You must definitely be mistaken."

"Are you sure about that, (Y/N) _-ya_?" And there's something about the way he says my name that makes me wanna slap him, mainly because he knows I can't be 100% sure that I didn't.

_JESUS FUCK! THIS IS DEFINITELY NOT MY DAY!_

"I couldn't have— I mean, that just can't be possi—"

"Oh, but it can be." He smirks, "I mean, I can't really see how you could confuse me with Zoro-ya. We are nothing alike—"

"Exactly! You are nothing alike! Zoro isn't an ass like you. So is beyond my comprehension to understand how could I have been able to compare you to him!— A lot less, confess anything when— WHAT THE HELL IS SO FUNNY!?"

"Oh wow..." He chuckles, eyes sparking with amusement and teeth chewing down on his bottom lip. "I wasn't expecting for you to fall so  _easily_ for it."

_What?_

"Fall for wha—!" My words get caught up in my throat when I finally realize what he has done.

"I've never said anything about you confessing to me, now have I?" He chuckles and I swear to God I wanted to murder him. "You did called me Zoro if that makes you feel better. But your little crush? Well, it was pretty obvious to me, kitten." He steps closer to me as I back away, until he manages to trap me between his body and a wall, his face dangerously close to mine. "I'm very observant of things that have caught my interest. And you, darling..." He takes my chin in between two of his fingers as he forces me to maintain eye contact before he finishes. "You top the list."

_I TOP THE LIS—DID HE JUST CALLED ME KITTEN?!_

"You're such an asshole!" I groan, finally connecting the lost membranes of my brain before I push him away from me, regaining my sense of space as he barely stumbles back and laughs at my antics. I pound against his chest with closed fists but he brushes it off as if nothing happened.

_He's such a dick!— A dick with a nice laugh, but a dick in the end!_

"Now, now..." he 'reprimands' "that's not very lady-like, is it now?"

"I will fucking murder you."

He chuckles. "So vicious but that's fine. I like my woman with a strong character."

_I'm sorry, Jules. I'm going to prison but I'll gladly go if it means I MURDERED THIS FUCKING ASSHOLE!_

∞

"Uhh, guys?" Jules voice brings me back to reality and makes  _both_  of us stop in our tracks, eyes moving towards the couple as Zoro,  _that shithead_ , does his best to contain his laughter behind a hand and Jules... well, she's just concerned. "Everything okay?"

And who can blame her; I'm currently on the back of this asshole, pulling at his hair and trying to choke him to death as one of his hands rests against the back of one of my thighs, holding my weight up and stopping me from falling. Meanwhile, his free hand, tries to somehow get rid of the grasp my arm has around his throat.

"Yes."

"No."

We both answer at the same time but only he continues. "(Y/N)-ya and I were just having some fun, isn't that right?"

" _Know I will kill you in your sleep_." I whisper with murderous intent against the shell of his ear before I smile as bright as I can muster towards Jules. "Everything's fine! What about you? Did you picked up the game?"

"Yeah!" Zoro replies, "Luffy's gonna be super stoked!"

"That's cool, we should all play together, spook each other out with some pizza, don't you think?" I suggest as I don't miss how Jules eyes keep going back and forth between me and Trafalgar. She's trying to decipher it by herself, but knowing her she already has.

_Not that I will admit to any of that._

"That's a great idea! Sabo's home this weekend maybe we should do it then!" Zoro keeps going, wrapping an arm around Jules shoulders, making my attention shift away.

"Sure," I reply. Jules eyes collide with mine and before she even gets to breathe I say, "we should go buy the tickets now before is too late."

"Oh yeah," Zoro says, "definitely." And as I watch Jules and Zoro walk towards the line with their hands intertwined and his lips leaving a kiss to her temple. I find that familiar ache in my chest back, that, until is replaced with a pain in my head when the asshole's existence makes himself known as he whispers in my ear...

"So about that threat which involves you killing me in my sleep..." He trails off as I glance at him sideways, a tattooed hand deep within the space of his front pocket and the other one placing itself against the top of my head. "Does it means you're spending another night at my place?"

"IN YOUR FUCKING DREAMS."

∞

"Soooooo..." Jules trails off as we sit in a table near the candy-shop, waiting for the boys who are buying some snacks before the movie starts. "Are you gonna spill what's the deal with that guy or do I have to punch the truth out of you?"

After a meal of me glaring at Trafalgar and basically ignoring him whenever he talked just to have him annoy me till I exploded which only resulted in me giving him what he wanted, it actually surprises me she had waited this long.

"There's no deal." I sigh, looking away as my eyes find themselves attracted towards where Zoro should be; however, I get intercepted midway by that stupid asshole's knowing smirk and seductive eyes. I huff loudly and shake my head away, bringing my eyes back towards my friend as she awaits for more details. "He's a dick." I conclude.

"Did you slept with him?" She bluntly asks and I choke. "I'm sorry, was I supposed to give you a heads up or..."

"Would have been nice. Damn... you aren't beating around the bush now are you?"

"I think you did," she starts, ignoring ny statement. "He's certainly acting as if he's close but you are acting as if he's the plague. So something  _definitely_ happened."

"Nothing happened, he's just...  _unpleasant._ I was wasted and just slept at his place. Nothing happened."

Wasn't a lie though. I just left out the mind blowing sex that was still coming back to my mind in broken pieces and how much of a dick he was later on about it.

Jules laughs. "He likes you." She states.

"No. He  _likes_ to tease me." I clarify, "He's pure evil I tell you!"

"So are we." She smirks, "Mark my words, Torres. He's teasing  _you_  because he likes  _you_!"

"Jules, this isn't kindergarten." I sigh, wanting her to drop the subject. I was seriously not in the mood to have my best friend play cupid with the guy I had proudly declared my worst enemy a couple of hours ago. "Drop it, I'm serious. I want nothing to do with that guy."

"Bummer." She sighs in defeat. "And here I was expecting for you to finally get some!"

"JULIETA!" My outburst captures, not only the boys attention, but also several other people's attention as they stand in line.

_I need to control my voice. I swear..._

"What?!" She complains with a teasing smile. "A good night's fuck might do you good."

_Oh honey, it has done everything to me but good._

"Julieta, drop the fucking subject before I punch you."

"See? Anger is an after effect from abstinence!"

"You dumb slut." I laugh dropping my head against the table, closing my eyes and soon enough, before I know it, there's an unfamiliar weight being set on the table.  _Must be the tray's_. I open my eyes to find Trafalgar's gray ones looking down at me as he munches on popcorn, and for some reason the fact he's not smirking or teasing, unsettles me.

I look back at him, just taking in his face features, I mean I had already appreciated the fact he had a nice face, even I, couldn't deny that. The way his raven hair looked incredibly soft made me want to — _A sudden flash of my hands gripping on it as pleas for more left my mouth suddenly appeared on my mind_ — and he seems to realize that as he smirks at me but says nothing. Instead, he rests his cheek on his closed fist while his elbow props itself up on the table, eyes still watching me in contemplation.

 _Such a nice face wasted on such an asshole. What a shame._  The thought alone makes me chuckle and that seems to get him to talk.

"What's so funny,  _kitten_?"

And that just killed my mood.

"Don't call me that, you ass!" I complain, shoving popcorn in his face as he chuckles, amused at my reaction towards the nickname.

_Who the hell does he think he is!?_

"Guys..." Zoro calls tentatively, "the movie's about to start so we should probably..."

"Get moving." Jules finishes as she sips on her soda. I nod my head and stand up, following my friend before I cling to her arm in desperation.

"Can I please be seated away from the plague?" I whisper, almost pleading.

"He has the tray with the popcorn and soda." She notes. "What do you think?"

_I wouldn't mind! I can live without popcorn and soda through a mov—Oh, who am I kidding?_

But after being seated next to him I find his presence to be the last of my problems. As soon as the lights go off and the movie starts, it takes me two or three glances towards my left to regret ever agreeing coming with them.

Zoro wastes no time to pepper kisses down Jules neck, kissing her knuckles as he lets his eyes close in delight before he whispers what's sure to be sweet nothings in her ear.

_I can do this._

I try to maintain my focus on the killer clown devouring kids but after 10 or 15 minutes the cruel reality hits me when I hear...

"Say, you feeling a little adventurous babe?"

"We are in the theater, Zoro!" She tries to play off and dismiss his advances but...

"So," he chuckles low and dangerous but for me it sounds so loud and clear. "I can't help myself around you besides you haven't said no before—"

_I can't do this._

I make my move and leave the movie theater, not saying a word, not glancing back. For all they know I could've just gone to the bathroom and not be on the brink of tears because of what I had just heard.

 _Probably should've done that—_ But I don't think myself able to make it. I barely make it to the door and manage to lean my back against the cold surface of the wall, my breath coming up in unsteady puff of air, my eyes stinging at the sensation of tears wanting to pour out and my hands trembling as they grasp the familiar feeling inside my chest.

I do my best to fight back the crippling anxiety roaming my limbs and every piece of my skin as it pierces my soul.

I try to focus my attention towards my eyes, as they take in the posters from different movies around the empty hall, to the noises my ears catch from the faint sound effects from other movies playing around, to the feeling underneath my fingertips as they sense the texture of the concrete wall behind me.

I try to shift my focus to those facts, try to shift my attention away from the fact his hands were holding hers and not mine or the fact she got to wake up everyday by his side or the fact that before I left she was kissing his lips because they belonged to her.

_Stop, stop, stop!_

I close my eyes and focus on my breathing, on those useless technics they teach you in cheap youtube videos of self-help as a track of copyrighted music plays in the background.

_Deep breaths, deep breaths... Focus on your heartbeat._

And I do that, finally finding control in myself as I open my eyes just to have them collide, for what might as well be the millionth time, with a pair of gray ones that are looking to stare deep into the pits of my soul.

I hate that.

But his touch is warm and his tattooed hands cup my cheeks with thumbs cleaning the stray tears—that I didn't even knew I had wasted—away. I allow myself to enjoy this moment briefly, even though it's ephemeral.

"Let go." I whisper.

"No."

"It wasn't a question, you dick." I smile sadly, eyes glancing towards his before they drift away. "Let go of me, I'm serious."

_I wanna escape the warmness I don't deserve. I wanna escape him._

"So am I."

"Trafal—" my words get cut off inside my throat when he leans in closer, making me  _try_  to shrug back into the wall as if it was possible for me to fusion with it. However, there's no escape. He's leaning closer and now I can feel his breathe brushing against my lips, I let myself surrender against him but as I close my eyes, my mind's filled with the image that instead of Trafalgar, is Zoro's lips that are approaching mine.

_I'm officially the worst scum to ever walk this Earth._

I expect the softness of his lips but I don't feel anything. And when I open my eyes I encounter his hands still holding my cheeks, his gray eyes drifting from my eyes, to my nose, to my lips—  _He's doubting it. I can see it on his face_ —He leans his forehead against mine in such an intimate gesture that feels foreign to me. He closes his eyes and exhales loudly in defeat.

He drops his hands away from my cheeks and steps back, the action allows me to breathe as if I had been deprived to and as his warmness leaves me, it only makes my body feel ten thousand times colder.

"Wha—"

"I'm not gonna kiss you."  _What_.  _WHAT._   _What the fuck!? This fucking dude has been teasing me all day, and now that he has an actual chance, he gives me this shit!? Fuck that! What the hell is his prob—_

"I'm not gonna kiss you while you think of  _him_." And with that he goes back into the theater.


	5. 004.

**IT'S EASY FOR ME TO SAY**  that once I go back inside the movie theater, the movie goes by in a blur. I jump only once and it wasn't even because the clown had appeared and killed someone, no. It had been because our hands had accidentally touched as we were both reaching out for popcorn.

After that, let's just say, my hunger disappeared rather quickly.

"Well, I better get going." I announce as soon as we exit the theater. "I have work in the morning so..."  _Okay, that was a load of crap. But in my defense_   _I was looking forward to put as much of a distance between Trafalgar Law and myself._

"Oh! I didn't knew you worked on Saturdays." Jules replies, coolly.

"I'm... working a favor out for a friend."

"I see," she nods her head in understanding. "We'll drop you off then, right Zoro?" The greenette nods his head but I quickly jump in that thread.

"No, no, no. That won't be necessa—!"

"It's no problem, (Y/N)..." Zoro's sweet voice cuts in, my eyes drift to the man who shrugs his shoulders off with a smile, one of his hands rubbing the back of his neck, sheepishly. "It would make me feel better to go out of my way if that means you can get home safe."

_Did you heard that? It was my heart bursting with happiness._

But he's just being a friend. Even if my silly heart wants to take that any other way, my brain knows better and I know when it tells me...  _'He's being a friend. A really good friend...'_  that it's true.

"I—" A deep sigh leaves my lips. "I appreciate the offer but I can't possibly accept that. You guys live all the way to South Blue and—"

"If you think I'm letting you spend your money in Uber or some shit like that, you're wrong! Besides, it's already too late!" At Jules words, my gaze shifts towards the clock on the wall, which displays the local time;  _'10:49 p.m'_

 _Holy shit! It is late! Perhaps I should reconsider on taking their_ —

"Don't worry, Julieta-ya." Trafalgar's voice cuts in, my worst fear coming to life with his next words. "I'll drop her off."

**_HELL. TO. THE. FUCKING. NO._ **

"Now, that's not—" I chuckle, nervously, as I try to fight my way with words. "You don't really have to d-do that."

"It's no problem. I live in the area." He shrugs, non-chalant.

 _Jules might not know it but I know for a_ **_fact_ ** _that's such a fucking lie! He lives in Rocky Port! That's like... AWAY!_

"You guys can go ahead. I'll take careof her."

 _If what happened yesterday was taking care of me then no, thanks. I rather rip my arm off_ — _There's no way Zoro's buying this, right?! I mean, he must know Trafalgar lives quite far and that he's ly—_

"Really? That sounds good man, though I don't wanna impose." Zoro's voice cuts in.  _That's my chance!_

"I—"

"Oh, don't worry, Zoro-ya." The asshole smiles, cutting me off. "It's no problem at all, you guys. Travel safe."

_I despise your very existence._

Jules words are laced with concern as she asks. "Are you sure, (Y/N)?" Her eyes looking into mine for approval of Trafalgar's suggestion. I hang my head down in defeat by the the guilt my friend makes me feel— _unintentionally_ —which makes me eventually cave in.

_That. And the fact she might inquire further about my "relationship" with Trafalgar in front of Zoro an if I were to be honest... Ain't nobody got time for that._

"Yeah, yeah..." I smile after a long deep and defeated sigh. "You guys can go home. I'll leave with Trafalgar."

"Okay," she kisses my cheek before she says. "Text me when you get home."

"Yeah," I chuckle. "You do the same, mom." She rolls her eyes at me as I push her in the direction of the greenette's arms which are expectantly waiting for his girlfriend. And as I watch them walk away, I can't help but to think— I wish I had that.

_Too bad the man I'm in love with is already taken._

By the time I watch them turn around the corner, their bodies disappearing from my range of sight. I'm quick to take out my phone and open up the Uber app, my eyes scanning over the fees as I walk towards the main entrance. However, I don't get that far when a strong but soft grip takes place on my wrist, confusion settles on my features but it's cleared by the sound of  _his_  voice.

"My car isn't that way, kitten."

"Okay. First, stop with the kitten shit." I threaten. He smirks. "And second, I'm not going anywhere with you."

"Huh?" he tilts his head to the side, hand pulling me closer to his body, a movement to which I blindly comply because honestly I'm too tired to fight it out. "That's not what you told Julieta-ya—"

"Well," I scoff. "As you have so kindly noticed," my words are laced with sarcasm as I shake off his hold on me. "There's a lot I don't say to Jules."

_Fucking asshole. Can't he just leave me alone?_

"If this is about what happened outside the thea—"

 _Did he just_ —

"I swear to God, that if you ever mention that shit again, I will make you regret it."

"So aggressive." He teases back, not even a bit startled by the dangerously low tone in my voice."My back has some good memories of that aggressiveness."

_I FUCKING LOATHE YOU!_

"Hey, Trafalgar?" I smile falsely. "Why don't you go die, you arrogant, self-centered, good looking piece of—"

"You think I'm good looking?" He asks, eyebrows raised in surprise.

_THAT HAS YOU SURPRISED!?_

"I'm done with you. Goodbye."

And that should've been the end of it, right?

So... Can someone explain to me how is that after making myself so clear with what I believe was a strong argument— I'm now inside his fucking car as he drives me home?!  _Oh yeah_ — the asshole over here had the fucking nerve to carry me over his shoulder like a sac of potatoes towards his car and when I started to punch his back, he slapped my butt! Oh, but it gets worse... When I started stuttering over my words and calling him for it he said and I quote.

"That's not what you said last night."

_I seriously hate this guy._

"Tell me," his voice breaks into what had been glorious silence. "Are you gonna tell me where you live or would you rather spend another night at my place?" He,  _suggestively_ , smirks. "Not that I mind, actually."

_In your fucking dreams, jackass!_

"Town Center building, Flevance Street." I grumble with arms crossed above my chest as I lay back against the seat of the car.

Trafalgar only chuckles in understanding and continues with the road ahead of us. I glance at the streets through the car's window as I let the soft music of Melanie Martinez's Bittersweet Tragedy fill the emptiness of the car, tiredness taking over me as I lean against the glass.

_"I'm not gonna kiss you."_

My eyes snap open as I remember the closeness I had shared with him, the way his hands had caressed my cheeks, how his eyes had looked deep into mine and the way he had blatantly rejected me.

_"I'm not gonna kiss you while you think of him."_

"We're here." He announces. And surely enough, we're outside my building.

"Okay, well thanks." I stumble fast over my words as I open the car door. But I don't even get to put a foot outside when he stops me with a soft hand over mine.

"Wait, (Y/N)-ya..." He calls my name without any hint of teasing, amusement or anything else related that I might've heard for the past 24 hours. "I don't want you to get the wrong impression about what happened at the theater—"

_What?_

"Well, you don't have to worry about that I didn't get any impression about it so you can let me go now." I try to move my hand away from his, try to exit his car with my dignity intact but before I can do that, he shifts his hand so he can get a soft grip on my wrist.

_Imma punch him._

"Look, I'm not about to be used by you and have you treat me as some sort of weird body replacement that you can use while you think of Roronoa Zoro." He continues, dismissing my previous words.

I scoff. "Use you? You are kidding, right? I want nothing to do with you, Trafalgar! And I believe I had already told you that—"

"Then what was that in the theater?"

"What?"

"Are you gonna pretend you were not seeing Zoro-ya as you were about to kiss me?" He retorts.

"Okay, first. Get off your high horse. I was not about to kiss you." At this, he laughs. But I continue. "Second, I might have been overwhelmed but Zoro was the last thing on my mind."

_Such a smooth lie, right?_

"I can see through that lame façade of yours." He says, voice enthralling and seductive. "Your  _lies_ won't work on me,  _amor._ "

_DID HE JUST CALLED ME 'LOVE' IN SPANISH?!_

I chuckle, dryly. "If my  _lies_ as you call them, won't work on you as you claim then why don't you stop wasting your time and leave me alone!" I try to fight off the hold he has on my wrist to no avail.

_Who the hell does he think he is!? Why does he affects me this much?! WHY DO I CARE?!_

"Don't mistake my intentions, kitten." And he's suddenly getting into my personal space, leaving me no way out as he pulls me closer by the hold he has on my wrist. "I have every intention in the world to make you mine."

_EXCUSE YOU, WHAT._

And as his words leave his mouth, I'm just sitting there, staring into his gray eyes as he stares back, licking his lips as his eyes glance back and forth between my lips, eyes and even glancing down at my cleave—

_WAIT WHAT?! IS HE STARING AT MY BOOBS?!_

"I would rather die than to mess around with you— ** _AGAIN_**!" I emphasize with obvious disdain before his smart mouth can retaliate, and finally manage to pull my hand away from his grip.

"I bet I can change your mind." He smirks, in the most god-forbidden way possible.

"Why you—" I sigh. "Just stop  _chasing_ me altogether, okay? I'm not gonna fall for whatever trick you have under your sleeve." I say rather calmly and having said my piece, I slam the door close behind me, but not without missing the sound of his voice as he shouts through the car window.

"That sounds like quite the challenge!" A brief pause in my walk makes him continue. "I would love to take it!" I groan annoyed at his words as hurried steps take me to my apartment door. His words keep replaying themselves inside my head.

_Challenge. Take it. Fuck._

_I seriously hate his guts._

Meanwhile, inside a black BMW, there's a ravenette whose smile is still glued to his lips as his head's thrown back against the headrest. Every gesture she could've possibly made in the last 24 hours gets imprinted on his mind as he closes his eyes for a moment and decides for the 2nd time in his life that he's definitely gonna make her his...

Next morning, I unnecessarily wake up between the mess of sheets I proudly call bed, as I let my eyes glance towards the digital clock next to it—Big red numbers showing it's way too early for me to be awake and so with a groan, I roll back into sleep.

At least I try to but soon I'm rudely interrupted by Havana's Marimba mix I have set up as a ringtone on my phone. The loud and obnoxious music makes me groan as my hand carelessly picks up the device before I bring it to my ear.

"Hello—"

_"(Y/N)?! I NEED YOUR HELP! THEY ARE ABOUT TO NAIL ME TO THE GROUND!"_

"Whoa, whoa calm down! What's going on Ro—"

_"Nami isn't here and the kids are out of control and—and—!"_

"Wait, Nami didn't showed up?"  _Well, that's weird._

_"She said something about a shopping deal or something down at Tesoro Avenue—"_

_Okay, not so weird anymore._

I groan, followed by sigh. "You do know it's my day off, right?"

_"I'm really sorry, (Y/N). I'll buy you dinner! Sounds good?"_

_So unfair, he_ **_knows_ ** _food is like my kryptonite!_

I grumble into the phone before replying. "I want Don Gennaro's pizza and don't be cheap! I'll be there in 15."

I am a freelance worker. At least that's what I tell people because that's the modern terminology for  _'No company is willing to hire me in a boring 9-5 job so I'm unemployed and work several jobs.'_  But yeah, I am a freelancer.

That's why I'm currently separating two kids from throwing each other paint, meanwhile,  _I_  get dirty with said paint. One of my many jobs? Kindergarten teacher. Well, more like a helping hand kind of thing, the actual teacher is a tall, blonde, clumsy man whom I adore.

So when he called with desperation to come and help him out, I only hesitated for a moment before I let myself be bribed with food.

_A decision I am now regretting._

"Barry stop hitting Eddie!— Sophie that's not food!"

"Dylan, stop peeing on the plants!"

_Oh, the joys of working with kids. Am I right?_

Thankfully, after awhile, the kids energy finally runs out and soon enough they are all sleeping on the bedspreads near the window. I finally feel the air coming back to my lungs when I find a place to sit next to my blonde friend on the floor.

"Thanks for coming, (Y/N). I'm sorry to have bothered you in your free day."

"It's fine, don't worry." I shake my head, dismissing his words. "If I had not come you would've probably been dominated by the older kids and by now you would be a racing track." He laughs out loud.

"That's probably true. Kyle and Jamie can be a bit too much to handle. At least for me." He rubs the back of his neck as he laughs rather awkwardly at the fact he can get overpowered by two 6 year olds.

"Nami has some weird hold on those two. Maybe she bribes them with candies or something!" I agree with a chuckle, followed by a sudden yawn.

"Late night?" He chuckles.

I nod my head. "I went to see IT with some friends."

"How was the movie?"

"Killer clown terrorizes city, eats kid, kids chase clown and defeat him by the power of love or friendship—or at least something like that I think."

"Wow, you sound like a bad review site! Was the movie that bad or were you perhaps distracted?"

_Distracted? Yes, I was. Was that a good thing? Hell no._

"Perhaps." I shrug.

"Oh?" The blond man asks, perking up at my answer. "Met someone new?"

"Sadly, I did." I sigh, throwing my head back against the wall. "He's a friend of Zoro's and a complete jackass. Like I swear, he has the face and body of a greek god but he's just awful."

"How so?" The blonde tilts his head as he awaits for an answer.

"Well, he's a seductive piece of shit, an egocentric asshole who thinks there's probably no one better than him, maybe consider's himself God's gift to Earth—maybe he even is! And let's not forget, he has the whole bad boy attitude going on for him—Tattoos and all."

"He sounds like a real piece of work." He chuckles. I groan. "In fact, he kinda reminds me of someone I—"

"Oh, shit!" I suddenly curse as I glance at my phone. A recordatory with my best friend's name, popping on the bright screen. "I'm sorry, I—I forgot I had this thing and— Are you okay being alone?"

He smiles and nods his head. "Go. I'll be alright. Thanks for coming!" I smile back and start to head towards Jules place.

"I'm sorry, Jules! I got caught up in—" I gasp for air as I enter the apartment only to be met with the eyes of the man I'm completely in love with.

"Hey, (Y/N)!" He greets so casually, it pains me inside. "Jules went out to get some food. She shouldn't be long."

I nod my head, closing the door behind me. "Uhm, didn't you had a class today?"

_He did. I'm sure, because I avoid coming here when they both are around and Jules and I have movie night when he's out. Which is today._

"Oh?" He perks up at my question. "It got cancelled. The ceiling needs to be replaced so I'm free for the rest of the week! Nice, right?"

"Yeah," I chuckle rather awkwardly may I add. "Very nice." ****

I watch him go towards the kitchen, his back facing me and well defined muscles greet me through the thin material of his shirt. I sit on one of the kitchen stools as I continue to watch his every movement—My eyes catch the waistband of his jeans as he stretches his arm above him to reach the higher cabinets, the barely visibly tanned skin is enough to make my knees go weak at the sight of it.

"(Y/N)? Oi, (Y/N)... **(Y/N)**!"

"Wha **—** What?!" I reply alarmed as the shouting breaks into my concentration.

Zoro laughs at my confused state but  _thankfully_ doesn't seems to notice my staring. ****

 **"** I asked if you wanted something to drink. Are you okay?" He asks with concern and a smile painting his lips.

_I do but it wouldn't be appropiate._

"Uhm, no. Don't worry. I'm okay." I prop up my elbow on the counter as I lean my cheek against my fist. "Can I ask you a question, Zoro?"

"Go ahead." He answers back in a beat. His back towards me as he pours himself some water.

"Do you remember **—** "

"Tadaima!" Jules voicebreaks into my train of thought as I glance back to see her carrying several bags. "Oh, (Y/N)! You're here already! How was work?"

"Karmatic." I reply. "Did you leave something at the supermarket, cause it seems like you didn't." I chuckle.

"I agree, babe." Zoro chimes in. "This is enough food for more than a month."

"I know, I know." She smiles. "Buuuuuuuuuuuut I mean—I was already there so I might as well buy everything for the rest of the month, right?" She laughs and Zoro just shakes his head at her with a smile—the greenette's clearly already used to little actions like this from her.

"I thought you were gonna wait for me, Julieta." Zoro speaks in what might sound like a little scolding but turns out to be playful teasing when he goes in for her hand. His fingers caressing her knuckles, affectionately.

I advert my eyes from the scene as I let myself get distracted by storing the items Jules had bought away.

"I'm sorry, baby... but I bought you sake!"

I glance at Zoro. His face remains stoic. "The good one?" He finally asks.

Jules smiles. "The best one!"

Zoro's face slowly starts to morph into a smile as he pulls his girlfriend in for a small kiss. "You ain't getting away so easily tho," he chuckles. "I believe a punishment is in order, don't you think babe?" He seductively suggest but before she can answer him, his phone goes off with the notification of a message.

" _Shoot_!— I was supposed to meet Ace and Luffy for basketball a while ago!" He grabs his keys, pecks Jules cheek, waves me goodbye and grabs his jacket by the door as he shouts cheerily, "Have a good time, girls!" Before he closes the door behind him.

Once Zoro's out of my range of vision, I turn back to watch Jules as she stares at me.

_Why is she staring at me?_

"What?" I ask, confused, laughing—for some reason—uncomfortably.

"Nothing." She shakes her head with a smile. "What are we watching?"

By the time we were in the middle of the second movie, Flatliners; Zoro's time with the boys waslong over so I took that as my queue to make a move and make my way home, not before promising Jules I would text her as soon as I got home.

After calling a taxi, which arrived rather fast, I started checking on my messages, emails and whatnot before entertaining myself through memes on Facebook. An advertisement for Don Gennaro's pizza shone through the screen which reminded me certain blond owed me some of that.

I scrolled through my contacts and getting a hold of his number, I dialed him, hoping he would pick up which,  _thankfully,_  he did.

_"Hello—?"_

"DONQUIXOTE ROCINANTE, I HOPE FOR YOUR SAKE, YOU DID NOT FORGOT ABOUTMY PIZZA!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm soooo sorry for the delay for this chapter, college and my health got in the way haha. please enjoy.


	6. 005.

**"ROCINANTE?" I CALL INTO THE SEEMINGLY EMPTY APARTMENT AS I TURN THE LIGHTS ON BUT GET NO RESPONSE**. I shake off my jacket and leave the shoes by the front door as I walk closer towards the black leather couch before I drop my bag on it. My gaze drifts into the kitchen area, only to be met with the familiar box of Don Gennaro's pizza— along with a yellow sticky note attached to the top.

My hands take hold of the note as it catches Rocinante's messy writing.

_"hopefully you'll forgive me with some pizza tho and thanks for today, you were a lifesaver! -C"_

_Oh right, the blonde mess isn't here_... When I had called him earlier, he said he was in the middle of a family dinner or something and that he had left me a gift on top of the kitchen bar.

_Well, if we get technical, this wasn't a gift. It was a form of payment for dealing with those little life suckers, also known as children, today. But yeah, okay. Whatever._

My hands, carefully, lift the lid of the box as the smell of hot, melted cheese invades my nostrils. It smells like all the good things should. And since I haven't had a proper meal in all day, I indulge myself into the treat, mouth watering at the taste.

By the time I hit the third slice, I'm full and officially bored. My bed's the same welcoming mess as it was this morning, and although I could watch that new episode of "A Korean Odyssey." I don't fancy the idea of staying alone on a Saturday night so I decide to change myself into some more appropriate clothing and take my troubled mind to the only place where I know I'll find some peace.

As soon as I leave the apartment, I let my ears be blessed by the melody going through them, in this case, Feeling Good by Michael Bublé fills my ears as I start walking towards my destination—thankfully, it's within a considerate walking distance, and well, the fresh air might do me some good.

The cold air around me doesn't feel as cold as it should, and I silently thank the fact I decided to take my jacket on the way out. The city looks deserted as the sidewalk gets enlightened by the few light posts on the street and soon enough, the building I'm reaching for, comes into view.

Grand Line Studio 8— This actually was a dance company managed by Nefertari Vivi and her family, she was a profesional dancer and a close friend to Nami. The orange-haired girl had been the one to recommend me this place after I had just moved in. Back then, when I was still living with Jules, it was even farther from our place but I didn't care, it was worth it.

As the doors open, automatically, for me. I walk through the lobby until I reach the front desk where I am greeted by the brunette I call my friend, as she smiles up at me.

"(Y/N)!" she cheers, in excitement. "Oh my god! I haven't seen you in a while!"

"I know right!?" I laugh along. "Work's been unmerciful... Got anything available for me?"

"Let me check," she says as her eyes drift down towards the computer screen, where I'm praying there's in fact an available room waiting for me. "Oh!" She perks up. "Room 5 is clear! Go right in."

"Thanks, Koala! You're the best!"

When I make my way inside the room I'm faced with a wall covered by mirrors—purposely there so you could watch your moves— A ballet bar, breaks the scene in half as it's attached to said wall—going horizontally.

There's also a pole dance a little to the left—made from stainless steel—that's attached to the ceiling and connects with the floor. The floor's smooth and easy to move, and the lighting is just right.

I walk towards where the speakers main control is located and hook up my phone along with my Spotify playlist, the music slowly starting as I take off my jacket and bag, before letting them fall to the ground.

The first song blasting through the speakers of the room turns out to be Survivor by 2WEI, I take the opportunity of the slow song to warm up my muscles and stretch around as I prepare myself for the heavier workout.

The following song starts playing and it brings a smile to my face as I mimic the choreography made by BTS during their song Go Go. My body moves around to the lyrics, replaying the movements as if I'd have been doing them for years.

I go like that for a couple of songs, before I stop myself and get some water. Breathing heavily as I try to soothe my racing heart—  _God, I missed this!—_

As I take one final gulp of the still cold water, my eyes get caught by the pole dance in the room and the need of wanting to practice around it. I put away the water before I walk towards my goal, my hands getting in contact with the cold material as a shiver runs down my back.

Last time I have been in contact with one of these, I had been teaching Jules how to use it since she wanted to give Zoro a surprise for his birthday.

_I gave him booze and he gave my cheek a peck along with some thanks, I pretended for a moment till I remembered he only meant it as a friend._

I shake myself away from the memories as I grasp with steady hands the pole and jump, wrapping my legs around it as my mind acts—as if on instinct— and forces my body to move around it while As We Fall by League of Legends plays on the background.

_"Ooooh, this one!" He claims. "This one's reaaaaaally good, (Y/N)!" The greenette looks overly excited and I love it. In his hands, there's a copy of 'Overwatch' as he expectantly waits for me to grab it. "You'll definetely like it AND we can play together so I'll teach you everything!"_

_"You sure about that?" I tease as I take the game from his hands, turning it over as I let my eyes scan the different features it possesses._

_"You doubt my word?" He teases back, pushing my shoulder with his. I roll my eyes, ignoring his words as I continue to look through it and compare it with other titles like Resident Evil, or Assassin's Creed._

_"I don't know, Zoro..." I drift off, unsure. "I basically suck in this type of games, maybe I should just stick to what I know and buy Resident Evil or something like that."_

_"You break my heart," he feigns heartache as he looks down at me with that smile that has had me on my knees since long before I can remember. "I wanted to play with you but if you wanna go solo that's cool."_

_I don't remember what was said next, or what happened or how is that he left my side to greet Jules that was waiting for him by the entrance while I stood in line with both titles in my hand, or why after all that time my heart still ached whenever they kissed._

_Why does it still hurt?_

_'I can't hold on much longer...'_

I drive my body forward and keep it close to the pole as the coldness of the steel breaks my concentration away from the memory. I push myself into a couple more of fancy movements—allowing the song to finish and once it finally does, I let myself slide— _carefully_ — down to the floor, arms aching from the effort and sweat dripping down my back.

My chest's rising up and down as I try to catch my breath. Meanwhile, my skin glistens with sweat from the heavy workout I just put my body through. I lay down in the floor, heartbeats coming to a steady pace as the melody from Lana del Rey's Blue Jeans combines itself with my heavy breaths.

However, the entrancing lyrics only manage to unintentionally trigger, yet, another memory.

_Cocktail dresses, cheap drinks and, hot and heavy music— They all seem to be non-existent in comparison to the scene developing right in front of my eyes... The way Zoro's hands pose themselves, possessively, on Jules hips as he drags her closer to his body, the way her back seems to be flushed against his strong chest and how her butt's grinding against his crotch as he smirks against her neck. Not even I, can unsee the way her eyes close in delight to the feeling while she throws her head back against his shoulder._

_I realize there and then, that just as those cocktail dresses, cheap drinks and the hot and heavy music don't matter... so do I._

_'Promise you'll remember that you're mine... Baby, can you see through the tears,'_

_Suddenly, his hand is wrapping itself around her neck, fingertips guiding her face to his as their lips get closer, his aiming for hers, breaths playing—playfully—against each other... And I can't look away..._

_'Love you more, than those bitches before_  
_Say you'll remember,'_

_Why can't I look away?_

_'Oh, baby, say you'll remember_  
_Oh, baby, oh..._  
_I will love you till the end of time...'_

_Riiing, riiing, riiin—_

"Hello?" I pick up the phone that has—thankfully— interrupted the parade of my painful memories as I hear the unmistakable voice from...  _"(Y/N)!"_  Rocinante...  _"THIS DRINKS ARE SOMETHING ELSE, HAVE YOU TASTED THEM!?"_  ...Drunk.

"Roci..." I sigh. "Where are you? I thought you were having dinner with—"

 _"I WAS HAVING DINNER IS WAS DELICHIOUS—"_ His voice gets interrupted for a moment, creating static, which makes it impossible for me to hear him.  _"—AND GIRLS SWARM AROUND AND THERE WERE DRINKS EVERYWHERE AND GIRLS WERE CALLING ME DA—!"_

"Okaaaaay—! I don't need the details, Rocinante. Do you need me to come get you or something? I'm not home but I can go back for my car and—"

_"YOU'RE NOT HOME!? WHYYY!? SOME HOT DATE!?"_

"Oh my god, Roci..." I chuckle as I stand up, walking to pick up my stuff. "You're so wasted. I'm going to pick you—"

 _"NAAAAAAH, BARE NO WORRIES—"_  Again, static.  _"I'LL BE THERE SOON!"_

"Bare no what? Roci—!" However, I don't get to finish that sentence when my voice gets cuts off by the fact he hang up on me. My eyes stay glued to the screen until the time is displayed on it. 9:33 p.m.

_I swear to God, I ain't nursing Rocinante's hangover!_

I grab up my bag, jacket and turn off the sound system along with the room's lights before I close the door behind me.  _Maybe I should go home before Rocinante arrives, wasted out of his mind and— "Hello kitty, you're so pretty, how are you alone?"_ The loud and upbeat music coming from one of the rooms, breaks my concentration and makes me stop outside Room 2.

There's quite the gathering around and somehow I manage to catch the locks of raven hair as the owner, moves his body to the music's rhythm. He's quite skilled, his movements are strong and fluid, perfectly in sync with the song and his face's decorated by an infectious smile.

His technique is quite unique. Just like him.

And once the song has finished, along with his performance, I can't stop myself from shouting with a big smile. "NICE WORK, PORTGAS!"

After waiting for Ace to finish up his classes, we make our wait outside, joking and laughing as we used to do back when I still was a regular down at this place.

"Still, (Y/N)! You should've told me you were coming down to the studio!" Ace complains with a childish pout as we exit the building. He's wearing a pair of black jeans, a white t-shirt underneath his black leather jacket and the necklace his adoptive mother had given him.

A necklace made of big, round, red beads.

"It was a last minute decision, Ace..." I apologize between small giggles. "I was at Jules and Roci wasn't home and I didn't wanted to be alone on a Saturday night so I decided to drop by... Besides!" I counter, "I thought your classes were in the afternoon!"

"Got changed." He quickly explains. "Got a day job, instead."

"With Pops?" I ask, wrapping my arms around myself to shield myself from the cold.

"Yeah, Thatch and Marco are also in it. Pops, wants us to get acquainted with the company so..." He shrugs his shoulders off as if that finishes to explain the situation.

"And my classes are still a success!" He grins like a 7 year old. "I thought that by the change in schedule, maybe I would end up losing a few people, but they managed to follow me here, isn't it awesome?"

"Well, I'm not surprised! You have always been quite the popular one."

His fingers play with the locks of thick raven hair as he pushes it back. "I don't necessarily think that," he chuckles. "My classes would be more popular if you were there."

It's my turn to chuckle. "Well,  _I_  don't think that, Ace." I shake my head. "You're plenty popular by yourself."

"Maybe you should come around someday and put it to test, Torres."

"I smell challenge, Portgas!" I laugh, slightly and playfully, pushing him away. "Okay, okay... I might clear my oh so busy schedule and come around." I joke as I watch him get onto his bike.

"Want a ride?" I arch an eyebrow at him, and he immediately goes red in the face "I meant on my bike! Like take you—I didn't meant—Not that I haven't—I MEANT I CAN TAKE YOU TO YOUR PLACE!"

"Geez, relax, Ace..." I chuckle. "I didn't say anything."

"But you thought about it."

I shrug, "you'll never know. Maybe you're just that evil-minded." He looks stunned, but I pretend not to see it as I add with a smile. "Is that offer still standing?"

He pretends to be upset, but I pout at him, cutely, while poking his ribs. "Fine, fine, get on, you bully!"

"Thanks, freckles!"

"You ain't gonna deny that?!"

"Nope!"

Thankfully the streets were pretty much empty and there was no sign of a soul as Ace drove me through the different streets until we made it to my place; and after him making sure I had received his schedule, I promised that I would stop by somewhere around this week.

"Looking forward to your presence, (Y/N)." He smiles at me, before he revs up his bike and goes on his way.

I walk my way towards my apartment and unlocking the door, I'm greeted by blinding darkness that elicits a loud groan from my throat.

_I guess this means, Rocinante isn't home yet..._

Flicking the lights on, I greet to no one specifically, in distinctive Japanese as I have been doing for the past years since Jules and I had met.

"Tadaima."

I care no less as weariness takes control of my body and forces me to drop my jacket, bag and shoes by the door and waste no time to reach the bathroom—for a much needed bath—while dropping more items of sweaty clothing along the way, carelessly.

The warm water seems to be the perfect antidote for my sore muscles as it soothes the ache I had acquire during my workout earlier.

I stay in the warm water only enough before my skin prunes and quickly reach out for a clean towel to dry myself in. I empty the bathtub before closing the door behind me as I pick the strewn clothes across the carpeted floor and take them to the laundry. I go back into the kitchen to grab some slices of the cheesy treat before retiring away for the rest of the night to some well deserved Netflix.

However, life has other plans. I don't take two steps into the direction of my room when a constant, loud knocking is heard coming from my door.

I take highly into consideration the fact it could be a peddler or someone who has the wrong place and try to ignore it... That until—

"FAAABZ!" Rocinante's drunken voice calls. "I FURGOT MY PIES! COME FER MAI, PLUSE!

I consider for a moment changing since I'm basically dripping wet underneath the towel, but this is Rocinante. I mean, he might be drunk and all but I've known him enough to feel comfortable like this around him besides I might use this as blackmailing material in the future to make him a blushing mess.

The thought brings a smile to my face as I walk towards the door "I'm coming, you big drunk baby!" I joke as my fingers unlock the door open, only to  _instantly_  regret all my life decisions.

Because on the other side of the door, there's the last person I wanted to see in this day, no, scratch that. It's the last person I wanted to see ever. PERIOD!

"Well, hello there (Y/N)-ya." He smirks as he struggles with a drunken Rocinante by his side. "We have to stop meeting like this, don't you think?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> excuse my existence for this chapter. also i know i haven't been that active in a while but i was sick and then i got handed a load of work from the college. i'm in the middle of completing my thesis so i might be away till august and then i'll resume my posting schedule. 
> 
> thanks for reading!


	7. 006.

**I'M SURE MY EXPRESSION MUST SEEM HILARIOUS TO HIM.**  After all, he fails to contain the small chuckle that manages to leave his lips as Rocinante falls completely asleep next to him. The soft snores coming from the blonde finally manage to kick my senses awake towards the situation in front of me.

"What—What are you—I mean, what—I—WHAT?" I stutter as my hands get a tighter grip on the towel that is the only barrier between me and Trafalgar's piercing stare.

He smirks. The bastard fucking smirks, managing to hold most of Roci's dead weight on his side with one hand while he leans against the doorframe with the other. "Cora-san said he lived here. I was suprised myself, gotta say. What are the odds?"

_Ninguno. ZERO. None. ERROR 404. Database not found!_

"None! I can tell you that for sure!"

He chuckles, the smirk that plays on his lips could make angels become demons. "Can I come in?"

"No! I—What the hell are you doing here?!"

"I told you, Cora-san said he lived here. Does he not?"

" _Cora..._ " Oh, right.  _Corazon_. That's what his brother used to call Rocinante as some sort of codename back at his old job. Once he quitted, the nickname just stuck to him, Rocinante loved it anyways, so it was fine.

"Look," he starts, successfully capturing my   
drifting attention. "As much as I would love for you to just stand there,  _looking like sin_ , Cora-san isn't getting any lighter. Can I leave him here?"

"Uh, yeah, eh... leave him on the couch." I reply after I manage to kick myself awake, opening the door wider so the ravenette can make his way towards the couch with the drunken mess by his side.

_Goddamn you, Roci! You brought the enemy with you!_

There's an awkward silence filling the air and I wanna break it by asking, how the hell do you know Rocinante?! Sadly, he beats me to the punch...  _Sort of._

"Does Cora-san actually lives with you?"

_Is it bad I think it's actually cute he calls him Cora-san?_

_Yes, (Y/N). It is!_

"Eeh, yeah," I sigh deeply, closing the door behind me. "It's a long story. He lived by himself and the apartment was way too big for him alone and when he stopped working with his brother, the rent became too much for him to pay alone."

"I see..." He gives a swift nod in agreement, eyes glancing down at the sleepyhead. "He talks a lot about you."

"He—He does?" At that, my eyebrows raise in surprise.

"Yeah," he nods his head once. "I gotta say, though, I was surprised to find out that the stubborn woman he was so fondly of, was you."

I blush at the comment. "Well I mean, I—Wait... STUBBORN?!"

"Yeah," he chuckles. "Stubborn, forgetful, lazy, sarcastic as hell, can't cook to save her life, incredible messy—"

_Rocinante, what the fuck?! Imma slap you silly when you wake up!_

"Okay, okay! I get it— _Sheesh_!"

"He also said you are loyal, amazing, kind, caring, trustworthy, the best friend there could be out there and that you have a heart made of gold."

_Okay, I might have to forgive Roci from those slaps I mentioned before._

"I—Well, I don't know about—"

"I agree."

"You agree?" He nods his head, looking over at me with  _that_ expression on his face. His lips are curved into a smile but even I can see, that one is filled with a certain hint of sadness. "I think you  _truly_  are an amazing person."

_Don't look at me like that, as if you understand, as if you wanna—_

His words leave me speechless and I'm unable to stop the words from leaving my lips with such aggressiveness as a reply. "You don't even know me, Trafalgar."

Because somehow I feel attacked, he's getting too close, too fast and I don't want that, so I react.

_Aggressively, may I add._

His eyes look into my own, gray irises sinking deep into my skin as if trying to make me understand something. Something, I obviously fail to see, however the eye contact doesn't last long for me to decipher what and soon his gaze drifts away from mine, thoughts deep into something maybe I'm not supposed to pry in.

In that moment,  _unwillingly_ , my gaze gets caught by the way his shirt clings to his broad shoulders, to the locks of raven hair, which tips seem to be slightly damp by the drizzling rain. The silence is there again and my thoughts run too fast for me to catch up, it's making me feel as if I'm drowning in them.

I want it to stop.

_I want him gone._

He chuckles, not even the slightest affected by it, in fact, it almost seems as if he was expecting it. "Let me know you then." He starts walking towards me, interrupting every line of thought I may have prepared.

I scoff. "No, thank you."

He chuckles. "Why? You scared you gonna fall for me?"

"As if!"

_THIS DUDE I SWEAR TO GOD!_

"Then what's the problem?" He's suddenly close.  _Very close._

In fact, he's so close, it forces me to take a step back, until my body finds itself with no way out thanks to the closed door behind me.

"T—That I know you and this game you playing and I—"

"Ain't gonna fall for it?" He smirks, closing the distance between us. His fingers catch my chin, softly, tilting it upwards as if to re-connect our eyes. "Trust me, (Y/N)-ya, the only thing I want you to fall for is me."

_SAY WHAT NOW?!??_

His voice is dangerously low, eyes scanning my face, searching for something, maybe a reaction as if testing the waters. I wanna speak up, I wanna tell him to back off, I wanna—

"Do I make you nervous?" He muses, voice so deep and dangerously close to my ear that it drives an involuntary shiver to run down my back.

He chuckles. "I think I do."

"Fuck you." I groan.

"You have."

_THIS MOTHERFUCKING ASS!_

"A mistake that will haunt me for life." I spat, shaking his touch away from my face.

He chuckles, unaffected, and probably encouraged. "Are you sure about that? Cause that's not—"

"What I said that night? Well I was intoxicated, goes to show in the poor decision I made to sleep with you."

"Hah, I love how much you trying to deny you liked—No,  _loved_ , having me inside you. How good it felt as I pounded deep into—"

I close my eyes. "Stop that."

"Why? You feeling hot underneath that towel?"

_FUUUUCK. I HAD FORGOTTEN ABOUT MY WARDROBE DILEMMA!_

"You wish, you asshole!" I scoff. "If you seriously think that's gonna work with me, then you're barking at the wrong tree."

He drops his head on my shoulder, I can feel him inhaling deep into my skin, it paralyzes me because it's addictive and intoxicating for some fucked up reason.

"You really are something else, aren't you?" He chuckles, lifting his head, face suddenly robbing me from any personal space that might have been available.

Our breaths are mixing with each other and his smells slightly of vodka mixed with tobacco.

_I like it._

"Well, let me get some encouragement at least..."

"Encouragement? What are you—" And suddenly I'm unable to finish my line of thought as his lips capture mine.

His movements are slow but full of passion, it feels sensual and private, needy and breath-taking, it feels like those kind of kisses I have ever only seen in movies, the type of kisses my friends brag about, the type of kisses I've seen Zoro give Jules.

It ends too soon. And I wanna hit myself.

_Because I want more._

I can't even get a word out when he does all the talking. "Ah! I feel recharged!" He smiles.  _Genuinely,_  smiles as if he was a little kid who just received a treat. "Tell Cora-san to call me tomorrow."

And just like that, he is soon, leaving my personal space and closing the door as he leaves the apartment without giving me the slightest chance to retaliate.

_WHAT THE EVER LIVING FUCK JUST HAPPENED?!_

Next morning, all I can think about is how badly I wanna hit Rocinante's dumb ass!  _But_... I don't do that, instead I appreciate how he redeems himself for his past sins with what must be the splitting headache he's nursing right now.

_That should be punishment enough for bringing the devil's son into my living room._

"Faaaaaaaabz!" He whines as he walks past by me in the kitchen. "Where are those pills?"

 _But I still can't help but wonder... if he's the one who is 'redeeming' himself_ — _unknowingly_ — _that is, then why am_ ** _I_** _the one nursing after him!?_

"In the bathroom's cabinet, Roci." I call from the kitchen with a heavy sigh as I slowly stir the pot full of chicken soup I'm currently making for the blonde mess.

"You're a lifesaver, (Y/N)." He praises before popping two pills into his mouth. " _Pheeew!_  I swear I'm never drinking again!"

_Yeah, you said that the last time, and the last one before that and even the one before that..._

"The soup will be done soon, Rocinante." I announce as he drops his dead weight into the couch, a hand covers his eyes from whatever lights gets it's way inside the apartment. "In the meantime, you could start by telling me about Trafalgar..."

_I AM ON A MISSION TO KNOW WHAT RELATIONSHIP DOES THAT ASSHOLE HOLDS WITH THIS WALKING TREE!_

"Law?" The way he says his name is important, his attention is now solely on me. "How do you know him?"

_I SLEPT WITH HIM!? HE KISSED ME LAST NIGHT!? HE KNOWS OF MY AMOROUSNESS WITH CERTAIN MARIMO!?_

"He brought your drunken ass last night." I decide to simply reply. "He called you  _Cora-san_..." At the mention of the nickname, he sats up fast, face red with embarrassment.

"He—He did?"

_OH NO. HE'S BEING CUTE!_

"He—"  _Keep it together, (Y/N)._  "He did, Rocinante. So..."  _ANSWER, YOU DAMN TREE!_  "Who is he?"

"Uuh, well... Heh, Law's..." Rocinante chuckles, rubbing the back of his head as if offering me an apology and it's not only until he finishes his sentence that I understand why. "...Law's my son."

_YOU SAID WHAT!??_

"YOUR SON!?" I am shook. That's one way to put it. "You, Donquixote Rocinante, has a son!?"

"I—Well, yeah..." His smile is so apologetic and pure. "He was 13 when I adopted him. He was a brat with an attitude but a heart made of gold!"  _Oh, that explains a lot tho._  "I had to fight against Doffy on the custody though."

"Doflamingo? Why?" I can't stop myself from asking.

"He also had an interest in Law and wanted to raise him but I was against it. Doffy would've been toxic for Law, he would have no remorse in ruining that kid's life if it meant achieving his own goals."

"Is that why you stopped working for him?"

"Yeah," he nods his head. "I wanted to give Law some normalcy."

_Normalcy, eh?_

"Why the sudden interest in him though, did he said something?"

 _SHIT_.

"Eeh, no. Not really, he just—I was just curious because of the nickname thing."

"Oh..." he says, flopping back on the couch. "I see."

"Soup should be ready now, although you should be careful..." I warn in a teasing tone. At this Rocinante sits back up, raising a curious eyebrow at me. "Wouldn't want to intoxicate you with my non-existent skills to cook since I cannot depend on that to save my life, right?"

The color completely drains away from his face. A series of nervous laughter leaves his lips as well as a stuttered and badly worded lie. "THAT—THAT—I SWEAR THAT KID JUST MAKES SOME THINGS UP, I SWEAR."

His 'laughter' however stops the moment my eyes make contact with his, my glare seems to be enough to send a shiver running down his back and to provoke a little _'Eeep'_ to escape his lips which I find hilarious but he doesn't needs to know that.

"...Sure." I coldly reply.

After dinner, Rocinante excuses himself with the excuse to lay down because he isn't feeling that well but I can clearly hear how he is chastising down the asshole of Trafalgar down on the other side of the apartment. The glass door breaking my place away from his doesn't do a great job at keeping his  _'WHY DID YOU TELL HER LAW!?'_  at bay and for once I find that amusing and entertaining.

Jocelyn Flores by XXXTENTACION plays on the speakers from my living room but not too loud since the feast I'm currently enjoying by Trafalgar being scolded is just way too much. However, soon Im not longer able to hear Rocinante's voice and that either means, the conversation got quiet or the call ended. By this point, it doesn't matter, Trafalgar got somewhat scolded, that'll do for me.

I'm in the middle of 'Worst in Me' by Unlike Pluto when the music gets cut off by the sound of my ringtone. Ace's photo and name contact glows on my phone's screen.

"What's up fire-face?" I greet, happily into the line after I answer him.

 _"HEY, (Y/N)!"_  He screams.

_Bye-bye hearing, it was nice having you._

"Goddammit, Ace! Try not to leave me deaf, please and thank you."

 _"Ooops, sorry, heh."_  He chuckles, his boyish charm is unmistakable even on the phone.  _"I was wondering if you were free today?!"_

"Today?"  _Eeeh, no. Nothing I can think of._ "Nope, I'm free. What's up?"

_"Wanna come by the studio?"_

I seriously doubted whether to go or not to the studio... Netflix was tempting me with some good old chapters from a show I've been meaning to catch up, but Ace managed to convince me down at the end.

_"We can go eat something later!"_

He had some strong arguments, after all.

And so, I promised the narcoleptic boy that as soon as I finished cleaning duty I would make my way over there as soon as possible. Thankfully, it didn't took long for me to finish and soon enough I was already changed into some more appropriate and comfortable clothing, letting Rocinante know I would be out and would probably catch a ride from Ace on my way back.

He wished me well and I reminded him to call me if something was up and where the pills were as well as the remnants of the soup for him to munch later on.

It was still pretty early on the day when I left my apartment. The sun was out but it wasn't unbearable to walk under, so I opted for walking down to the studio with a steady pace, my earphones blasting music from my trustworthy list.

The upbeat rhythm from BTS Cypher 4 made the walk go by in a flash.

When I went through the lobby, I was surprised to know Koala was already expecting me. Ace must have let her know of my arrival, because as soon as the brunette saw me, she immediately points me to the room where the freckled face boy is already waiting for me. 

"Here I am, freckled boy!" I announce,  _proudly_ , making my way over to him.

"Hey, don't call me— **WHOA**."

"What?" I chuckle, nervously.

"Nothing. You—you look hot." He compliments, in his well known Ace's charm, a smirk painting his lips.

"Oh, shut up, you—!" I try to call back, but the blush on my cheeks don't make my words carry that much conviction.

"Hai, hai..." He laughs it off while I drop my bag near his, his hands are raised in fake surrender and he keeps smiling.

_You little shit..._

"What do you have for me, fire-face?" I cross my arms above my chest, eliciting a wide smirk from the ravenette.

Three hours later, I regret asking that question. My muscles are beyond sore and Ace doesn't seems to be the least tired, in fact he looks more energetic if anything.

 _Please, tell me your secret, you narcoleptic piece of_ — _!_

Though now that I think about it, I will probably be something like, not sleeping till noon, eating healthy, regular exercise and all that— to which, I have no time. But all that aside, I am wearing the biggest smile ever, one I have not used in such a long time.

I missed this. I didn't realize how much I missed this till Ace had me repeating the same step all over again from that 'No Lie' choreography we came up with today.

As I wait for Ace to come back from picking up some water, my body's moving along the rhythm of the music blasting through the speakers, the lyrics from 'Mi Gente' allow me to move freely, body going along wild movements as I let myself be guided by it.

For this moment, for this sole moment, I am finally able to forget, even if it's just for a while that I'm in love with a man that will never be mine. That the devil's son knows now where I live in.

The music soon ends and the slow clapping coming from the back makes me realize I'm not longer by myself. I think for a moment it's Ace but turning around I'm surprised to see  _him_  instead there.

"Zo—Zoro!" I can't but stutter as he walks towards me. A smile decorating his lips. "What—What are you doing here?"

"Doing some light training. I'm surprised to see you here though." The way his shirt clings to his  _sweaty_ body is sinful like and quite unfair if I might add.

It has my brain dying on me.

"Eeeh, well..." I chuckle, nervously. "I—Ace asked me over and I decided to make peace with the dancefloor, I guess, heh."

"I'm glad," he smiles. And god I swear I melted on the spot. "You're good." He compliments, "really, really good." His voice making compliments at me, I think, will forever be my weakness.

_Lord, why must you test me?_

"Ah, stop it," I joke. "You're just spouting nonsense there!"

He's about to reply when certain freckled face decides it's now the right time for him to come back.

_Damn you, Ace!_

"Roronoa!" Ace calls with a smirk, the greenette turns to greet him and the two exchange a few words, I don't realize I tuned myself off from their talk until Zoro calls my name, his hand patting my head once, softly.

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Game night. At Sabo's place, you're in?" Ace adds.

I nod my head with a smile. "Yeah, yeah... I'm in!"

"Great—! Oh," Ace suddenly snaps as his eyes glance at the watch on his wrist. "I gotta go! Pops called and said something about Luffy letting a raccoon into my room!"

_Wow... wut._

"We are gonna have to cut it short, (Y/N)! But you have to come to the class, so you'll help me out, okay?"

"Wednesday night, right?"

"Yup!" He cheers. I nod in agreement and after that he, messily, picks up after his stuff, running away from the room before he comes back, seeming to remember something else.

"You need a ride, (Y/N)?" He asks.

"Oh— no worries, Ace. Pops is expecting you already, go."

"Yeah but Pops will also kill me if he finds out I let you go home by yourself this late!"

"Ace—!"  _I'm an adult_ is what I wanna say.

"Don't worry, dude." Zoro's voice cuts in. "I'll drive her back, go."

"Really? Thanks, dude I owe you one!"

_Why do I feel like a package to be delivered? ...I wonder._

"Zoro..." I start, "you don't really have to do—"

"But I want to," he cuts in. "Besides if Jules knows I let you all by yourself she'll have my head and I rather be in good standing with her, you know." He jokes, but it's painful to know how his preoccupation is directly linked to my friendship with Jules.

"Sure..." I laugh softly.

"Lemme change and I'll meet you downstairs, okay?" He asks and I nod in agreement, I watch the greenette go his way before I clean up the room, shut down the music system and lights before closing the door behind me.

Koala's shift has finished and is now Rebecca, the one who sits in front desk.

"Hey!" I call as I reach her. She looks up and seems surprised to see me for a moment before she greets back.

We talk for a while, laughing at out silly jokes, about that show we are both behind, about her dad and what not till Zoro finally makes his way to the lobby.

He looks a little out of breath, his forehead shines slightly with what seems to be small droplets of sweat and I can't help myself but to laugh slightly at his appearance.

"You okay there, Zoro?" I tease.

He grumbles before replying. "I swear this place gets bigger or they change where everything is supposed to be!"

_Sweet, beautiful marimo. When will you admit that your sense of direction is non-existent?_

"Sure, Zoro. Sure."

Thankfully, the greenette lets himself be guided on the way to my apartment, in the car as the radio plays 'Fools' by Troye Sivan. We talk about a bit about his Kendo classes and how he has a tournament next month, before he shifts the talk towards his anniversary with Jules, thing which catches me by surprise since the date is still pretty far away.

"Aren't you a bit early there?" I joke, masking how the subject low-key stings me.

"Well, the thing I have for this year requires some planning..."

"Oh, whatcha have in mind?" I ask, curious.

"I'll tell you later on but I was expecting that you'll help me out when I'm close to be ready?" He asks, unsure, fingers tapping against the steering wheel.

_Do I really have a choice though?_

"Sure, Zoro!" I smile softly.

"Thanks, (Y/N), you're the best!" He beams with excitement.

_A little voice wants to ask, if I'm the best, why didn't you chose me instead?_

"How long has it been? 2 years?" I force myself to ask.

_Even though I know the answer to that question..._

"Yeah, 2 years." He answers with such an honest smile it hurts my soul. "Time goes by fast, don't you think?"

"Yeah," I mutter, eyes glancing back to the passing lights of the streets through the window's car. "It does..."

Not long after that and before I know it, we're outside my place. I say my goodbyes to the greenette before I'm left standing watching his car disappear on a turn to the left, towards his girlfriend, a girlfriend whose waiting for him at home, a girlfriend who turns out to be my best friend.

_My life is officially a soap opera._

After that, I'm honestly about ready to call this a day but when I enter my apartment I am tackled by a huge ball of furr, tongue licking at my face as my eyes come into focus to recognize the animal before me.

_Isn't this..._

"Bepo! Get off her, boy!"

"What on Earth are you doing here?!" I call out as I look up to the gray eyes I'm getting more and more familiar to, without wanting to.

I don't get an immediate reply, instead, he smiles down at me as if saying 'I know something you don't' and before I'm able to scream at him to spill it, he talks.

"We'll be living here from now on, (Y/N)-ya."

**_YOU'_ ** **_RE_ ** **_WHAAAAT?!?_ **

"Please take care of us."

_I'm moving out._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hiii... so.... yeah... this is HELLA late, but im working on more chapters. i promise i'll be more active. there's A LOT of content coming to you all very soon.
> 
> thanks for waiting for it. hope its worth it. also quick note: this is no longer an OC story but a 'x reader's' story.


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